January may be the coldest month, but it is an ideal time for gardeners to start preparing for spring. With longer days, plants begin to stir, and a few simple tasks can set the stage for a flourishing garden. David Domoney, horticulturist and presenter of Love Your Garden, advises tackling key jobs now to give plants, flowers, and vegetables the best start.
One essential task is clearing fallen leaves and turning over the soil. ‘You only need to turn the soil over, creating large clods of earth. The action of freezing and thawing on the moisture within the soil breaks these large lumps into smaller ones, doing the hard work for us,’ explains Domoney. Digging over flower beds and vegetable patches exposes winter weeds, aerates compacted earth, and improves drainage, making it easier to mix in organic material.
Indoor sowing offers a flying start to the growing season. Domoney recommends using damp seed compost or cotton wool in a small plastic tray, covering with a plastic bag, and keeping out of direct sunlight until germination. Fast-cropping microgreens such as basil, radish, broccoli, sunflower, beetroot, or pea shoots provide excellent nutritional returns. Rhubarb can also be planted outdoors on a dry, frost-free day.
Supporting local wildlife is another crucial January job. ‘At this time of year, there’s very little naturally occurring food about for our feathered friends,’ says Domoney. To help birds stay warm, he suggests making fat balls by mixing two parts birdseed with one part lard, moulding into shapes or filling old yoghurt pots, then hanging them in the garden.
